A Response to Jimmy Iovine & Apple Music

It should be noted Jimmy Iovine issued an apology prior to my writing this, but my comments still stand.

“Women find it difficult…to find new music.” Or so says Jimmy Iovine as he tried to sell the merits of Apple Music on CBS This Morning earlier this week. (I’d suggest following that link to watch the interview before you continue reading so you have a point of reference.)

I’m not one to get all riled up about things often. I know it’s easy to nitpick a sound bite to death, and it’s become everyone’s favorite Internet pastime.

But even after watching the full interview, as a female music fan I find this statement and basic premise for selling me on the merits of Apple Music so infuriating, I don’t even know where to begin. It definitely struck a nerve.

As a female whose main creative outlet is writing about and sharing music…it’s maddening to be told I don’t know how to find new music, so Apple should be allowed to do it for me.

Maybe it’s difficult to find new music through Apple’s services, Mr. Iovine, but is sure isn’t hard to do if you’re a living, breathing music fan – like me.

Take a spin around the music blogs to see who they’re posting about. Sift through new releases or theme playlists on streaming services. Have a conversation with your friends about what they’re digging these days. Subscribe to one of the killer box services out there whose purpose is to share music. Or hell, go to a show and check out all the bands playing, not just the one you came to see.

These are some of the easiest ways to find new music without needing a custom playlist.

Are custom playlists cool? Sure – I enjoy parsing through my Discovery playlist on Spotify every week. Are they easy? Absolutely – maybe even borderline lazy. But I would never rely solely on one outlet to recommend new music. There’s too many other things to explore, and I would surely miss finding my next favorite band.

The statement that really gets me, however, is that “girls” only listen to music when they’re “sitting around talking about boys.”

I’m a female, and I listen to music ALL. THE. TIME. I listen in my car, at my desk at work, while I’m cooking or doing the dishes or even while I’m sitting here writing blog posts.

And actually, I spend more time sitting around talking to my friends ABOUT music because it’s what we all enjoy and have in common. We discuss the lyrics and what they mean. We point out that one little percussion detail in the song we love. We talk about albums as a whole, what they are trying to say and what they mean in our lives. When we go see bands live, we discuss the experience to no end – how great the live version of Song A was or how the vocals absolutely killed when they played Song B.

And you know what? As a result of those “sitting around” conversations, we SHARE that music. We don’t need a service to provide it to us based on algorithms with a “human touch”.

We ARE the human touch.

So suffice it to say, while I’ve spent the last two months wondering if I should make the switch from my current streaming service to Apple Music since it launched…the decision was made for me this week. I won’t be re-subscribing to Apple Music anytime soon.

And the rest of the time? I’ll keep going to shows, reading posts from my favorite music bloggers and talking with my friends about the music they love.

Who needs Apple Music when you have a kick ass musical girl gang to help you discover new bands?

I know zero about this situation aside from the video you linked, but it definitely comes off as a little insulting and presumptuous. I’m the type of person you’d find sitting around listening to music INSTEAD of sitting around talking about boys, not as a paired activity, thank you very much.

The fact that he keeps using the phrase “curated by REAL people” begs the question, if women can’t find music on their own, and these playlists are so realistic that they’re being created by “real” people, are you implying that women had no impact on the compilation of these playlists? Because that’s not “real” at all.

The interview is basically it and people are upset he implied women can’t find music. I can see through all that to the point he was trying to make – that the ads show women gathering together, discovering and enjoying music through using the app. Cool, awesome. I love anything that makes it easier for my friends and I to do just that. (And I like all the women they chose for the commercials.)

Agreed! I didn’t hear about the comments he made, but it is really insulting. Yes, many women don’t know how to find new music…but it’s the same for men. lol. I don’t understand the need to put that on women like it’s a female problem.

By the way, I’m not sure if you’ve already done this, but I’d love to see a post highlighting some of your favorite music blogs/bloggers!